There are number of the general trends and challenges in the Manufacturing Industry that companies come across, some of are:

1.     Leveraging data and analytics in a new business model

2.     Innovative Pricing

3.     Develop Strategic partnerships

4.     Mine Operational Data

5.     Decide what IP to share and what to develop exactly

6.     Create strategies for talent development and retention

The overall landscaping of project management and importance of project management in the manufacturing industry is no different than it would be in any other industry. There are still steps that should be taken to ensure that the proper management is taking place. But there are 5 “understood practices’ for managing manufacturing projects.

-       Firstly, know that fundamentals remain the cornerstone to success. A great example of this would be, selecting the right team, devoting enough time to the planning phase, gaining executive commitment, and following the designed plan to achieve ultimate success.

-       Secondly, master speed, manufacturers are starting to feel more pressure to make rapid progress. The bottom line is that everything evolves around time, one can’t get time back. If one can deliver a day quicker than the competition, they are more likely to gain the business.

-       Thirdly, companies should create a cross functional focus. Cross-functional focus is beneficial no matter the environment, it’s especially critical in manufacturing environments. In order to create rapid and sustainable results with projects, a cross-functional team must be involved. Even in the most isolated of cases, related departments need to be in the loop and be supportive of the changes. Projects have started to involve more functions because supply chains have become more complicated. So essentially, all the departments involved need to collaborate and make sure there is no grey area to make sure things run smoothly.

-       Fourthly, Companies should have a common goal. Going hand-in-hand with striving for a cross-functional focus is the need for common goals.

-       Lastly, proactively manage the critical path. As in all projects, the critical path is important. In manufacturing companies, the key is to proactively manage the critical path. Manufacturers rely on project results to grow their business, increase profitability, improve efficiencies, accelerate cash flow and deliver exceptional customer satisfaction. Thus, it is well-worth looking at best practices to ensure success. Start with the fundamentals, keep speed and cross-functional goals in mind and aggressively manage the critical path—and success will follow.

The manufacturing industry is largely focused on providing quality products and competitive prices to its consumers. The strength of the modern global economy allows the manufacturing industry to acquire the best raw materials possible from vendors all around the world, cheaper than ever before in order to make products cheaper and better than they’ve ever been.

The prevailing style of project management in the manufacturing industry is supply chain management. Which is the study of how resources are taken from raw producers, refined in the manufacturing process and distributed to the consumers and customers of the company. The main objectives in supply chain management are to reduce waste, over production, and maximize efficiency.

One industry example can be Johnson & Johnson which is a manufacturer of products related to the healthcare industry. Johnson

Automotive industry part manufacturing company

Another Industry example of project management techniques in manufacturing can be shown through an analysis of LEAR Corporation strategies. The automotive manufacturing industry is extremely competitive and every company is looking to make their process more efficient and effective. One of the problems Leer identified within their strategies was their use of Microsoft Project. The licensing for that software is extremely expensive so there was limited access and there was no online sharing of the plans so it was very hard to be transparent in managing the project. So Leer decided to integrate EasyRedMine which is an online project management software that allowed for a huge increase in productivity of manufacturing.

" The assigned industry is Manufacturing Industry."

i. expected growth of projects (challenges) in your assigned industry

ii. discuss best practices of planning and managing projects within your assigned industry

iii. discuss whether agile project management is used and if so, how?

iv. discuss the types of skill sets (in terms of project management) students should develop if they decide to work as a project manager in your assigned industry?